Taraf de Haidouks
Nov. 5

Recently described as 'the best Gypsy band in the world' (UK newspaper, The Independent) Taraf de Haidouks are a thirteen-piece band of Romanian Gypsies who are no strangers to such compliments.

Their first album was released in 1991 and went straight to the top of the European World Music charts. In 1998 they won the BBC World Music Award and seem to spend all their time touring (which is no mean feat when the oldest member of the band is 77 years old).

Their music at heart is pure traditional Romany folk, ballads that 'transport the listener to a Gypsy camp where tears glisten like stars in the flickering camp fire' and fast accordion propelled rhythms that 'rock like an Arabic rockabilly mutation'.
The band themselves say that over time and travel the music is evolving. It certainly is irresistible and if you just enjoy good music irrelevant of genre then see Taraf de Haidouks at Banana Hall.

Banana Hall
Entry: ¥5,500 • Time: 6pm
Tel: 06-6361-6821
Gypsy Folk

Boz Scaggs

Nov. 24-26

It is a long and winding road that AOR singer/songwriter Boz Scaggs calls his musical career. Back in 1959 at age 15 he was fronting a band with Steve Miller (yes, the Steve Miller), in fact they went through school and University together. The sixties took Scaggs to Europe where as well as recording a solo album (which failed abysmally) he found himself singing on street corners in Sweden. But it wasn't all doom and gloom and Scaggs was inevitably to have a reversal of fortunes in the shape of his 1976 album Silk Degrees, which spawned two commercial hit singles, Lowdown and Lido Shuffle.

The eighties saw Scaggs surprisingly go in to early retirement where he bought and ran a San Francisco club.
Of course that's not where the story ends, Boz Scaggs came
out of his recluse in 1988 and since has released a string of live and best-of albums with the occasional studio release of new material here and there.

So as he gets close to his 'official' retirement age Boz Scaggs keepings on going and aren't we glad he does. Catch Boz Scaggs on his three-night stint at the Blue Note.

Blue Note Osaka
Entry: ¥12,000-¥14,000 • Time: 7pm
Tel: 06-6342-7722 • AOR

Double Headline Gig —
The Beautiful Girls & Animal Liberation Orchestra
Nov. 30

The Beautiful Girls

Australian rock band The Beautiful Girls are certainly very busy. They've released five albums in three years and seem to be constantly on the road. This year alone they've toured the US, Canada, Europe, Australia and are now playing a few dates in Japan including a recent appearance at the Fuji Rock Festival.
Their latest album, We're Already Gone released in July of this year has sat comfortably in the Australian charts since and quite deservedly so. TBG themselves describe the music as raw; a collision of styles; a mix of art, dub and rock.
As for the band's name, which can be misleading, they wanted something opposite to all the macho posturing and tough guy images usually associated with rock bands, 'a beautiful girl was just about the sweetest, most appropriate opposite'. So there you have it, a tough, hard working Aussie rock band with a sweet name.

Animal Liberation Orchestra

It's a clear sign of a great band that can take so many influences from so many genres, blend them together and come up with something new, fresh and quite unique. And that is exactly what Animal Liberation Orchestra has done. There's funk, there's blues, there's jazz, there's mellow acoustics, there's rock, there's soul and there's even a little pop. It all sounds familiar yet at the same time quite bracing and unheard.

ALO are a relatively new band tracing their beginnings to University days in California when they were a nine-piece outfit. Trimmed down now to a solid quartet they spent the summer supporting singer/songwriter Jack Johnson and have also released a new album Fly Between Falls. Having taken the West Coast of America by storm they are now, as they themselves say, 'prepared to make their presence known worldwide'.

ALO are a band difficult not to like. They seem to have everything; energy, presence, musicianship and they also have a habit of springing the odd surprise encore with unusual covers such as Abba's Dancing Queen. They play with great passion, and as vocalist Zach Gill recently said 'ALO is more than just a band … ALO is our lifestyle'

Club Quattro
Entry: ¥6,000 • Time: 7pm

Live Listings November

11/1
Taste of Chaos @ Osaka Mother Hall 6pm. ¥7,800. Tel: 06-6535-5569. Metal.
11/2
10-Feet @ Namba Hatch. 5:30pm. ¥3,000. Tel: 06-6357-4400. Rock.
11/3
Mariko Takahashi @ Festival Hall Osaka. 5pm. ¥7,000. Tel: 06-6357-4400. Female Vocal.
11/4
Christopher Cross @ Osaka Blue Note. 6:30pm/9.30pm. ¥6,400-¥8,400. Tel: 06-6342-7722. AOR.
11/5
Taraf de Haidouks @ Banana Hall 6pm. ¥5,500. Tel: 06-6361-6821. Gypsy Folk.
11/5&6
Orange Range @ NHK Osaka Hall. 5pm. ¥5,250. Tel: 06-6233-8888. J-Pop/Rock
11/7
Feeder @ Club Quattro. 7:30pm. ¥5,800. Tel: 06-6281-8181. Indie.
11/8
Keren Ann @ Osaka Blue Note. 6.30pm/9.30pm. ¥5,000~¥7,000. Tel: 06-6342-7722. Female Vocal.
11/9
Magnet @ Club Quattro. 7pm. ¥6,000. Tel: 06-6281-8181. Folk Rock.
11/9-11
BoysIIMen @ Osaka Blue Note. 6.30pm/9.30pm. ¥12,000-¥14,000. Tel: 06-6342-7722. R&B.
11/10
Robopitcher @ TakuTaku Kyoto. 7pm. ¥2,300. Tel: 075-351-1321. Rock.
11/12
Mikio Ito @ Taku Taku Kyoto. 7pm. ¥3,500. Tel: 075-351-1321. Blues vocals & piano.
11/13
Maksim @ Festival Hall Osaka. 2pm. ¥6,000~¥8,000. Z0120-499-699. Classcial Solo Pianist.
11/14
Speech @ Osaka Blue Note. 6.30pm/9.30pm. ¥6,000-¥8,000.
Tel: 06-6342-7722. Hip-hop.
11/15
Hard Fi @ Club Quattro. 7pm. ¥5,500. Tel: 06-6281-8181. Rock.
11/16
Oceanlane @ Club Quattro. 7pm. ¥2,800. Tel: 06-6281-8181. Rock/Pop.
11/17
Oasis @ Castle Hall Osaka. 7pm. ¥7,000. Tel: 06-6214-8576. Rock.
11/18
Buckcherry @ Club Quattro. 7pm. ¥6,300-¥6,800. Tel: 06-6281-8181. Rock.
11/19
Yoshiko Kishino Trio @ Osaka Blue Note. 6pm/9pm. ¥4,500~¥6,500. Tel: 06-6342-7722. Jazz Piano.
11/20
NOFX @ Zepp. 4.30pm. ¥6,000.
Tel: 06-6214-8576. Punk.
11/21
SFUaNK @ Osaka Blue Note. 6pm/ 9pm. ¥4,300~¥6,300. Tel: 06-6342-7722. Jazz/Ska.
11/22
Leon Russell @ Club Quattro.
7pm. ¥7,000. Tel: 06-6281-8181. Rock.
11/23
Motley Crue @ Osaka Jo Hall. 5pm. ¥8,000-¥9,500. Tel: 06-6233-8888. Hard Rock.
11/24-26
Boz Scaggs @ Osaka Blue Note. 6.30pm/9.30pm. ¥12,000~¥14,000. Tel: 06-6342-7722. AOR.
11/25
Miki Imai @ Kokusai Kaikan
Kokusai Hall Kobe. 6.30pm.
¥5,775~¥7,350. Tel: 078-231-8162. Female Vocal.
11/27-30
Eikichi Yazawa @ Zepp. 7pm. ¥10,500. Tel: 06-6344-3326. Pop/Rock.
11/28
Gamma Ray @ Club Quattro. 7pm. ¥6,500-¥7,000. Tel: 06-6281-8181. Metal.
11/29
Akiko Yano @ NHK Osaka Hall. 7pm. ¥4,000~¥6,300. Tel: 06-6233-8888. Female vocal & piano.
11/30
Musiq @ Osaka Blue Note. 6.30pm/9.30pm. ¥7,000-¥9,000.
Tel: 06-6342-7722. R&B.

LIVE Section compiled by Phillip Jackson